


Skin Deep

by elfin (crazylittleelf)



Category: Fringe
Genre: Gen, Injury, Kink Meme
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-05-07
Updated: 2011-05-07
Packaged: 2017-10-19 02:09:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/195699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crazylittleelf/pseuds/elfin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The doctors keep telling him that his new skin is just the same as his old skin, but it doesn't *feel* the same.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Skin Deep

The water sluices down Lincoln's back, a gentle current pulling downwards. He shifts and leans forward, resting his head against the tiles under the showerhead, letting the water pepper his back with more force. He stays in the shower longer than he needs to — longer than he should given the water rationing, but he's waiting for the crawling feeling to wash away. The skittery feeling that leaves him rubbing absently at his skin all the time. The feeling that makes him want to dig his fingers into his skin and scratch until it feels right again.

He thinks it would be easier if there were scars, some marker that something has changed but even the old scars are gone. The one from when he was nine and his dumbass brother threw a baseball at his head. The one from the first case he and Liv worked together.

He towels off quickly when he steps out of the shower, getting the water off of his body as quickly as possible. He leaves the mirror fogged up. As Liv's so fond of pointing out, he doesn't exactly use it to comb his hair or anything. He hates looking at himself now. He looks exactly the same. He isn't exactly the same.

He stares at the skin on the back of his wrist and runs one finger over the back of his hand.

He scrapes his fingernails lightly over the skin on the inside of his arm, up and down until he's covered with goosebumps.

He rubs at the skin on his chest, just above his sternum where it's stretched thin over the bone. He knows the skin is red, but he keeps his eyes fixed on the cloudy surface of the mirror. The trails his fingers down his stomach, and the shape of the muscle there is the same, same curve and dip of his bellybutton, but he feels like he's touching someone else, like someone else is touching him. There's some fundamental disconnect between the skin that's supposed to be his and what's underneath it.

He shudders and glares at the fuzzy image of himself, visible now that the steam's clearing off.

He wants to ask Liv what it was like when she thought she was someone else.

He wants to ask Charlie what it's like to have something else living under his skin.

He pulls on his clothing and ignores the way the fabric settles against him and brushes his skin. He jokes with Liv and tries to not flinch away when she touches the back of his hand. He keeps his face neutral when Charlie slaps his shoulder.

He dreams about fire, and scrubs his skin until it hurts, and waits to feel whole again.


End file.
